Ments



No Model...) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.4

H. WOODWARD.

Y'IHBRMOPIL'E.

}No.^394',090. Patented Deo. 4, 18884l [WI/@MOV r www? (N0 Modell) 2 sheets-'sheen ,2.

l H. WODWARD.

THERMOPILE.

No. 394,090. Patented Dec. 4, 18,88.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY VVOODVARD, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN# MENTS, TO THE VOODlVARD ELECTRICAL COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

THERMOPILE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 394,090, dated December 4, 1888. Application filed October 7, 1887. Serial No. 251,697. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY WOQDWARD, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Detroit, in the county of lVayne and State of Michigan, but at present at the city of Toronto and Province of Ontario, Canada,

have invented certain new 'and useful Improvements Yin Therniopiles; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to generators.

The object is to produce a generatoliof eleo-A tricity which will be of high eiiiciency, and which will be at once comparatively inexpensive'of production and durable in use; furthermore, to produce a structure in which the elements are properly arranged for heating and cooling to form a generator.

Vvith these objects in View the invention consists in a novel element for use in a thernio-electric generator; furthermore, in the combination, Withsaid element, of a piece of metal, preferably copper, to act as a cooler and also to lower resistance; furthermore, in the combination, with said element, of a piece of mtal, preferably copper, to act as a cooler and lower resistance, and of a heat conductor or staff; furthermore, in a structure in which elements are properly arranged for heating; and, finally, in various novel details of construction, all as hereinafter fully de scribed. t

In the laccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, and in which like `letters of reference indicate corresponding parts, Figure 1 is a side 'elevation showing one form of element. Fig. 2 is a detail view showing another form of element. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the furnace, showing the manner of arranging and connecting the elements; and Fig. 4 is an elevation of the furnace, partly in section, showing the arrangement of the lues.

In the drawings, A represents the generator proper, of substantially the shape designed to be used in carrying the invention into leffect, and composed of an element, a cooler,

thermo-electric.

and a heat-conductor. The element is composed of two portions-one, a, of soft metal, which may be zinc, but isi in this instance, by preference, an alloy of antimony and zinc; the other of a strip or strips a of hard metal 55 which may be perforated or in the form of wire-gauze, and of. sufficient length to be bent in the shape and into the position shown 'in thedrawings. The strips are attached to oppositcends of the vsoft-metal portion in' any 6o manner that will insure their being held firmly in place and'will prevent their detachment upon the application of a suitable .dei gree of heat. This structure will of itself perform thefunction of; Van element; but. to facilitate the application of heat to onel end, which will be the inner end in use, it is preferred to attach a heat-conductor, inI this i-nstance a staff, a2, of hard metal, preferably iron; and that strip a', which will then be on what in use will be the inner end of the soft metal or., may be attached to the stai by solder, and then both be attached to the soft metal; While, in order to get a greater difference in temperature between the endsA of the element, it is preferred to provide'the end which will be the outer end inuse with a good conductor of heatfsuch as a piece of. copper, a3 l The end designated as theouter end is, for the sake of precision, marked in the drawings a4. I

To get strong effects in the use of my elel l ment,`it is necessary to connect up a number of them' in such a. manner that the electric current may pass uninterru'ptedly from one to another, whether lthe elements be arranged in a battery-chain, or in rows or tiers, and the elements should also be so arrangedthat they may be equally and evenly heated.

To connect two or more elements, these may 'be placed in such position 'that one or both -ends will be -left exposed, one of the metal end of the strip at the end of the mold and filling the mold with theV metal in la molten condition; or both strips may be' secured to the soft metal by placing endsof each'at the` ends of the mold;l or, as before stated, a strip having beenattached to the outer end, the other strip may be attached tothe inner end,

' together with the staff. Instead of (connecting the elements by solder or fusing, they may be connected by clamping.

Properly to heat the elements they should be arranged iin a suitable furnace. 'Such a.

furnace is designated' in the drawings by the letter B, and is' provided with a number of concentric passages, l) l b2 12,3, arranged about a central flue, B. The advantage of having many concentric passages is that any carbon staffs of the elements forming the chain before described are embeddedin cement, as shown in Fig-2, While the cement his in plastic condition, the ends extending through the cement andthrough the openings inthe sides of the furnace, in order that heat may come in contact with them. The ends are then connected up.

The elements are heated-in the following manner: The products of combustion from the fire pass up through the flue B', as indiyand aheat conductor or cated by the arrow inFig-4, then down through the passage @where they. enter the passage b',

`and so on through the other passages until they escape throu'gh Ithe chimney C, at the top of the furnace, having parted wi th a great portion of their heat.

In heating the furnace charcoal or coke is preferred, as either produces a clean and reg- -ular fire, giving a heatwhich will be equally distributed.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a thermo-generaton'an element consisting of soft metal, and the,perforatedmetal ormetallic-gauze strip, lsubstantially as de* scribed.

2. In a thermo-generator, an element consisting of soft metal and a strip of perforated metal or metallic gauze, and a suitable hard metal conductor attached to the elei|1ent,sub stantially as described. I

. 3. In a thermo-generator, the combination, wit-l1 an element consisting of soft metal and a strip or strips of perforated metal or metallic gauze, of a piece of meta-l to act as a cooler, staff, substantially as described. V

4. A thermo-generator consisting of the flue, the concentric passages leading one into the other, the outer casing provided with openings, and the elements extending through the heat, substantially as described.

ln testimony whereofv l affix my signature in presence of twov witnesses.

HENRY wooDwARD.

NVitnesses: I JNO. S. ANDERSON, ADAM I-I. MEYERs.

vopenings to be brought in contact with' the 

